Dartmouth Aires in final 3, Vocal Point to return for 'Sing-Off' finale

The Dartmouth Aires, a group that includes Utahn Nic Chuaqui as a singer and music director, perform on NBC's "The Sing-Off." They are in the final three on the show and voting ends Monday to determine the winner.

Lewis Jacobs, NBC

Summary

The Dartmouth Aires with Utahn Nic Chuaqui are one of the top three groups retained on "The Sing-Off" for the live season finale, which will also feature Brigham Young University's Vocal Point.

LOS ANGELES — The Dartmouth Aires made it into the top three on NBC's "The Sing-Off" Monday night, a group that includes Utahn Nic Chuaqui as a singer and music director.

The lone college group left standing will possibly compete in the live finale on Nov. 28 for the Sony recording contract and a $200,000 cash prize, against Pentatonix from Arlington, Texas and Urban Method from Denver, Colo.

In addition to the finalists, the top 10 groups – including Brigham Young University’s male a cappella group Vocal Point, and Delilah, which has two Mormon singers from BYU's Noteworthy group – will return to perform. Judges Ben Folds, Sara Bareilles and Shawn Stockman will also perform.

The Dartmouth Aires squeaked by after the judges deadlocked on a decision and asked the Aires and Afro-Blue to reprise a number to help them choose a group to stay.

The Aires’ song "Somebody to Love" by Queen, kept them in the running. Earlier they impressed the judges with their master mix of a Lady Gaga song with a Rolling Stones number.

"It's so much love,” Bareilles said. “It's so much fun.”

Folds said it was the "devil versus the devil."

For "Shout" – the number chosen by the judges for the Aires to perform – the group garnered some criticism for pitch problems.

"Instant party. Just add water," Stockman said while Bareilles cited pitch problems and Folds said there were some "pitch train wrecks."

The 16-man Dartmouth Aires hail from Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H.

Popular Comments

Ther is obviously some behind the scenes positioning going on in this
competition. It poses as an open competition, but it can be argued that the
network is insuring its ability to promote a group that meets its objectives,
which is okay, but let's
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4:58 p.m. Nov. 22, 2011

Top comment

whynot67

Sandy, UT

I have to agree. The judges are fickle at best with what they are expecting
from the musicians. Shawn has repeatedly praised groups for "making the
song your own." But when it came to a song that he personally grew up
liking he expected
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Sharon Haddock is a former full-time writer and editor for The Deseret News. She currently does freelance writing from her home in American Fork where she lives with her fellow journalist husband Marc Haddock. They have 12 more ..